![]() One of them, Brian Shinners, spent 12 years touring the world with Riverdance, so the performances are outstanding. The professional dancers are world champions. But both Erin and Britney are good sports and throw themselves into the festivities to much applause. It’s only when she is on stage, he realises she is heavily pregnant and probably doesn’t want to be jumping up and down. The lead guitarist of Shamróg has also requested a bride from Glasgow called Erin to take part. And so, poor Britney is pulled up and made to dance in front of everyone. My plus-one, my father, starts waving his hands and pointing at various strangers sitting at our table, claiming they would love to take part. At one point, they ask for volunteers in the audience. In between the music, four Irish dancers come up on stage and perform slip jigs, broom dances and reels. “You can drink when playing the uilleann pipes and you don’t have to wear a skirt.” They are incredibly talented musicians and it’s impossible not to start singing along and shouting out random lyrics. We learn the main difference between the Scottish bagpipes and the uilleann pipes. Shamróg perform favourites like Whiskey in the Jar, Mary Mack, and Finnegan’s Wake and in between tell the audience about themselves or shared factoids about the instruments they are playing. Eating mashed potato and gravy while listening to live music is a winning combination. I wonder why more concerts don’t offer a dine-in option. The lights go down and the show kicks off just as our food arrives. “We live in Jersey and hardly ever go into Manhattan,” she shrugs. You do feel a pang of guilt when you hear all the things a tourist manages to fit into one weekend. She points to a board on the table with an Irish toast written out phonetically (“Gu neye-ree an bow-her kun boo-la lat og-us gu my on geww i go-nee air du rim”) and advises we drink some whiskey after saying it aloud. You order your three-course meal (mains are lamb stew, beef and Guinness hotpot or bacon and cabbage), and by the time your starter has arrived, the band Shamróg will be on stage performing. An usher shows us to our seats and outlines how proceedings will run. Inside is a banquet-style set-up with large wooden tables, and Jameson and Powers whiskey bottles jammed with melted candles. ![]() I have walked past this hotel and signs for this show countless times but never really registered it as it is so geared toward tourists. This evening, I am heading across the quays to the Arlington Hotel where Celtic Nights, aka ‘The Best Irish Show in Dublin’, has been running for 21 seasons. Gesturing at the costume, he momentarily breaks character and acknowledges that, while “it’s probably a little politically incorrect, it’s what the punters want”. Freddie is the only on-duty leprechaun today, but he predicts there will be plenty more leprechauns on the ground for St Patrick’s weekend. His name is Freddie and “I am 500 years old”, he proudly states. I approach the aforementioned leprechaun standing outside a pub. “I just love it here,” she says, running down Merchants Arch. Another woman, Chloe Greene from Devon, is returning to Ireland for the ‘accent and partying’.
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